20 Forgotten Dorm Room Essentials Every Freshman Needs

This blog post shows you 20 forgotten dorm room essentials that you need to remember to bring with you to college! 

Packing your things to move to your dorm can get overwhelming. Even when you’ve got a whole dorm room packing checklist to make sure you don’t forget anything, somehow, you could still end up forgetting something.

More College Dorm Essentials:

• 20 Genius Dorm Room Storage Hacks You Need to Know for College
• The Ultimate Dorm Room Cleaning Schedule That Will Make Cleaning Easy and Less Boring
• 18 Essential Dorm Cleaning Supplies Every College Student Needs to Maintain a Spotless Space

So this post is a little reminder of all those forgotten dorm room essentials that will be very convenient while you’re living the college dorm life!

20 Forgotten Dorm Room Essentials You’ll Need to Pack With You for College 

1. Tissue

Tissues are one of those forgotten dorm room essentials that won’t cross your mind until you really need them. If you get hit with a cold or allergies (or fresher’s flu if you’re a freshman), you’ll be sneezing so much that you’ll wish you had an unlimited amount of tissues.

So, it’s better that you stock up on tissues now instead of waiting until the day(s) you’ll really need them, because no one likes going out to buy a box of tissues when they’re already sick! 

2. Surge protector/extension cord 

This is one of the most convenient yet forgotten dorm room essentials that you can’t survive college without! There won’t be many plug sockets in your dorm room, and there’s a slim chance that they’ll be close to where you’d need them (e.g., your bed or desk).

So, make sure to pack a surge protector tower or strip. This won’t only be convenient for charging things close to you, but you can charge many electronics at once, too. 

3. Long phone charger

On the topic of charging your devices, I’d highly recommend getting a long charger for your phone! The chargers that Apple provides with iPhones are great, but they’re not long enough, which can be an inconvenience.

If you have a lofted bed, then this is a must-have, as your long charger cord (whether USB-C or Lightning) will be able to reach your bed! 

4. Sitting on bed blanket 

When you have someone visiting you in college, and there are limited seating options in your dorm, it’s still understandable if you don’t want their outside clothes on your bed. With all the germs that their pants will carry throughout the day, it makes sense!

So if you don’t want their outside clothes on your bed but you still want them to feel comfy in your dorm room, get a “sitting on bed blanket.” Lay this blanket down on your bed, and your guests can sit on it! This way, your bed will still feel clean. 

5. Batteries

You never know when you need batteries until you come across a situation where you’ll need them desperately! So it’s better to have a pack of AA and AAA batteries on hand just in case, for whatever reason, you’ll need them one day.  

6. Vacuum Cleaner

You will thank yourself for packing a vacuum cleaner for your dorm room, especially if you get a cordless one, which makes vacuuming a quicker and easier task. Cleaning your dorm room regularly is so important for keeping it organized and tidy. And although it might be a pain to pack it (I know, they’re pretty heavy), you’ll be glad you did! 

7. Dish drying mat

Unless you’re living in a dorm with an en-suite, you’ll inevitably have to use communal bathrooms during your time in college. Your shower caddy will probably get soaked, and you’ll have to place it somewhere it can dry, without the water dripping onto anything else.

This is where a dish drying mat comes in handy! Place this dish drying mat underneath your bed or in your closet so that whenever you finish using your shower caddy, you can just put it on top of the mat, allowing it to dry without getting water everywhere! 

8. Scissors

This may seem a bit random, but this is one of those forgotten dorm room essentials you won’t know you need until you really need it! Keep some scissors in your pen case or on your desk for your convenience.

9. Umbrella

Even if it doesn’t rain often where your college is, it’s better to know that you have an umbrella to keep you dry from the rain than not to have an umbrella at all. You don’t need to buy a huge umbrella either, you can just keep a small one in your closet and use it whenever you need! 

10. Laundry drying rack

The best forgotten dorm room essentials are the ones that will save you a lot of money. Doing laundry in college is already expensive, so paying for drying on top of that can be a pain. But if you have a laundry drying rack, you can manually dry your clothes instead. It may take longer to dry, about one to two days, but it’ll save you a lot!

When I was in college, my laundry drying rack was the one item I never regretted packing with me, it may have taken up a bit of space in my dorm, but it was worth it for the amount of money I saved! 

11. Nail clippers

When your nails are overgrown, you’re gonna wish you had nail clippers to keep them short and neat. Plus, if you get a hangnail by any chance, you’re gonna need something to clip it off with! 

As someone who forgets where I’ve kept small items like nail clippers, I recommend buying a few, just in case you‘ve lost or misplaced one! 

12. Downy Unstoppables Scent Beads

There’s a high chance that the washing machines in your college can make your clothes smelly. Doesn’t matter how much detergent or fabric softener you put inside, the water from the washing machine might still either make your clothes smell like wet dog or make your clothes not smell as nice as they should.

So to make sure your clothes smell as nice as they possibly can, make sure to pick some Downy unstoppables scent beads. These will make your clothes feel and smell extra fresh! 

13. Reading light

You’ll eventually spend your college years doing all-nighters, whether it’s for reading or doing assignments. Instead of having your dorm light switched on the whole time, consider getting a reading light.

I loved having a reading light in college, mainly because if I was reading in bed, I wouldn’t need to get up to switch off my dorm light; I just had to switch off my little portable reading light! 

14. Tupperware

You never know when you’re gonna want to bring some food to store for later. Make sure you have some Tupperware for this occasion as you wouldn’t want your food going straight to waste when you could’ve had it as leftovers for the next day! 

15. Medicine

This is one of those forgotten dorm room essentials that you really can’t overlook. Any type of medicine that you can think of, make sure you have a stash of it somewhere in your dorm. Nothing’s worse than being sick and not having medicine to relieve you from the pain and inconvenience. 

16. Poo pourri

Using communal bathrooms in college means that sometimes, you gotta take a poop. As someone who hates the thought of other people smelling my poop, I had to put Poo Pourri on this list of forgotten dorm room essentials.

Poo Pourri helps to mask the smell of your poop after going to the toilet. The difference between this and an air freshener is that you spray it inside the toilet bowl before using the toilet, so that it traps the smell! 

17. Shower shoes

To survive communal bathrooms during college, you need to remember to pack shower shoes. The floor of these bathrooms can get really dirty, and it’s better not to risk getting some kind of infection from blood, saliva, or any other bodily fluids by walking around barefoot.

Save yourself the risk by getting shower shoes and wearing them everywhere in the communal bathroom (yes, even when you’re in the shower). 

18. Shower curtain

This may be more applicable to you if you’re living in college apartments rather than college dorms. When you move into a college apartment, you might expect there to be shower curtains provided, but they’re not! So don’t forget to pack shower curtains to avoid getting water all over the floor when you’re in the shower!

19. Brita jug

While you’re in college, it’s important to always stay hydrated. But you may find that your dorm kitchen provides hard water that doesn’t taste refreshing.

If this is the case, make sure to pack a Brita jug. These help to filter out impurities, chlorine, and odors from your water, allowing you to drink better quality water.

20. Utensils and plates

Contrary to what many people will tell you, you might actually want to cook while you’re staying in your dorm. If so, don’t forget to pack all the utensils you need, such as spoons, forks, plates, pots, pans, mugs, and cups.

Even if you don’t think you’ll cook anything, it’s better that you have these and decide not to cook than wanting to cook but having no utensils!